Voorhees High School’s girls basketball team kept asking questions in the second half, and North Hunterdon kept providing answers.
The Lions held off the rival Vikings for a 53-49 senior-night victory in a Skyland Conference interdivision contest in Clinton Township.
North Hunterdon (14-9) led the entire second half and pulled out to a 14-point advantage when sophomore Maria Newsome knocked down a 3-pointer to make it 38-24 with 2:25 remaining in the third quarter.
Voorhees went on a six-point run to close within 38-30, but Lions senior Brittany Goepfert knocked down a jumper to beat the third-period buzzer, giving the home team momentum going into the fourth.
The Vikings opened the final quarter with a bucket, but North Hunterdon’s Claudia Maira, also a senior, was quick to swish another 3 and push the advantage back out to double digits at 43-32.
“It seemed like every time they were getting close, somebody hit one big shot,” Lions coach Mark Franzyshen said. “… When we’re hitting those shots, it’s a very simple game.”
Goepfert scored on an assistant from classmate Kristina Harrel to stop a six-point Voorhees run and give North Hunterdon a 51-41 lead with 2:15 remaining.
“We stayed tough,” said Harrel, who finished with 14 points, eight rebounds and four assists. “It was our senior night. We were pumped and we were confident shooting.”
Vikings senior Allie Best tried to carry her team to a comeback, scoring Voorhees’ final 13 points in the last three minutes. Harrel, however, made a pair of free throws and the Lions worked enough clock to seal the result.
North Hunterdon snapped a four-game losing skid with a win over Delaware Valley on Tuesday and continued that momentum on Thursday.
“We played great together,” Harrel said. “We were always looking for the extra pass. We were looking for a team win. Lately in our games, we (had) maybe one pass and a shot. We really needed to focus on winning together, because we can’t win with just one person.”
Despite the Lions’ defensive efforts, Best, a Marist College recruit, was sensational for the Vikes. The senior guard had a career-high 30 points on 12-for-19 shooting. She also had 12 rebounds and five assists.
“She can drive; she can shoot; she passes very well,” Harrel said of Best. “She’s an all-around amazing player … I think we were successful in stopping everybody else, even though she was the main threat.”
“The girls played their rear ends off,” Franzyshen said. “I’m really proud of the defensive effort. Especially, on the weak side of the floor — it was outstanding. Allie Best is unreal. She got hers, but we were able to contain the other girls.”
Claudia Maira and Newsome both finished with 14 points for the Lions. North Hunterdon, which meets Warren Hills next Tuesday before hosting Piscataway in the NJSIAA North 2 Group 4 tournament, made eight 3-pointers.
“It’s going to carry us with some momentum into Warren Hills next week and then the state tournament,” Harrel said of the rivalry victory. “I think it really pumps us up. We’re ready; we’re not doubting ourselves.”
It was an emotional win for Lions’ five seniors: Harrel, Maira, Goepfert, Jordan Beneducci and Carly Monks, who is out for the season with a knee injury but started on Thursday before being subbed out. Many of the girls have been playing together since they were barely big enough to dribble, according to Maira.
“Kristina and I have been playing together since we were 7 years old,” Maira said. “This is almost one of our last games, so we just gave it our all. It was a fun night. We were really excited, so that helped us win, too.”
Kyle Craig may be reached at kcraig@lehighvalleylive.com. Follow him on Twitter @KyleCraigSports. Find Lehigh Valley high school sports on Facebook.
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